The Hacker

“the HACKER” is an official publication

of the Timez/Sinclair User Group of
Las YVegas-a non profit, educational
organization. Subscription to the
“HACKER” is $15.00 per year [12
issues) and includes membership to.
TSUG of LY. Please remit to:

Ralph Hammer(treasurer)
2105 Oakwood Ave.
Las Vegas, NY 89030

LET'S GET TOGETHER
Feb. 18,1989------ 1-3 pm.

PC SIG------------ 3-4 pm.
the public is FELCOME

Meetings are helid on the third
Saturday ofeach month and include:
a light-buffet lunch for members and
guests. The meetings are heid at

2345 Moorpark Way, Henderson, NY —

BOARD of DIRECTORS:

CHRIS FENN =-------+---- 641-4082
RALPH HAMMER -------- 649-4127
SVEN NILSSON---------- 386-3054
STEVE SA WCHUE-------- 451-6676

om CONTRIBUTING STAFF:

STE¥YE SAWCHUK
DAWN SAWCHUE
RALPH HAMMER
CHRIS FENN

EDITOR

-CO- EDITOR / MAILING
PROGRAM EDITOR
ART DIRECTOR

1656 MNN

Newsletter dedicated to the Sinclair family of computing

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SMUG EDITOR WINS
HACKER CONTEST

Congrats goes to aor.

Mr. Bill Heberiein,
editor of the SMUG
Newsletter for suppling the
correct answer to last
months program contest.
Bill actually came up with
five possible errors. The
one that we were looking
for was line number was
line 72 55. E Al

We of the HACEER, congratulate Bill
for his effort. His return letter was
dated Jan.2,1989. Bill will now
receive his own annual subscription
(12 issues} beginning this month.

The staff had fun running this
contest and are thinking of doing the
same soon. So watch for more
upcoming programs. Maybe you will
be next to receive a FREE year’s
subscription to the HACKER N/L.

QUOTE OF THE MONTH

rte
etal

One ear heard A A it, and at the
other, out it SA, => went.

ee i a eS
LREN

HOW Ve

Your back aches, your neck stiff,
your wrists hurt and your eyes are
burning. Like many of the 15 million
Americans who Spend their days in,
front of their computers and the
millions more work at home on
personal computérs, may be
wondering how far advances in
technology have set back your
health.

According to the January ‘89 issue
of U.S. NEWS and WORLD REPORT,
the following proceedures will help
you when you're at the ole keyboard:

Eyes to screen--------------- 16-24"
Line of sight te screen----- 10-20 deg.
Keyboard tilt--------------- 0-25 deg.
Floor to seat---------------- 16-19"
Floor to typing surface------ 23-28"

Many other devices that can help
relieve keyboard fatigue, can be
purchased at many computer outlets
and stores for the workstation. These
gadgets can be such things as filters
for the monitor, document holders,
tilting shelves for the keyboard,
footrests and many styles of chairs
for your backside. The prices vary
from around $7 to $1200

If computing is a form of relaxing
or you do it for a paycheck, then do it
right for the rest of your body.

Shape up that body in 89. Start
with better equipment and.a neater

workstation. “DO IT RIGHT”

2

SATELLITE TRACKING
PROGRAM AVAILABLE
FOR FREE

The December issue of QZX
Journal newsletter states that a

program is available for Timex

computers. This program is for those
of you who are intersted in a

Satellite tracking system.

The “SAT-BAHN™ program
information can be found in the
Sept.'88 issue of QZK. If any of you
are interested in this, all that is.
needed from you, the reader, is a
SASE. anda blank tape or
formatted microdrive cartridge. The
enclosure should match the
following:
2¥81/TS1000/TS 1500--BLANK TAPE
SPECTRUM /TS2068----- BLANK TAPE
Q)L---------------------- BLANK TAPE

OR FORMATTED
MICRODRIVE CART.
Your requests can be sent to:
QZX Journal
2025 O'Donnell Drive
Las Cruces, NM 88001

THREE DEALERS
2 BOW OUT OF ~
=) SOFTWARE SALES

Word has come down the mail
tubes, by way of the PLOTTER N/L,
that Enighted Computers has sold
all remaining stock of T/S software
to WMJ DATA SYSTEMS. Bill
Johnson of WM], stated that the
Knighted folks were heavy into IBM

Py

clones and were finished with the
sinclair line of software.

Rod Gowen, of RMG
Enterprises, reports that he has
Purchased all remaining rights and
stock from E-Z Key and Foote
Software, dealers in T/S products.
Rod states that he will soon have it
cataloged and ready for sale.

so, if you are looking for that
something special program, contact
RMG or WM] and see what just
was purchased from the three other
companies,

EAST COAST GROUP
SPONSORS GIANT FEST

One of the greatest Fests to hit the
East Coast, since Timex
introduced the 2068 ;
will be helg in the

Dc. area
from Friday
evening May 5, 1989 to Sunday
May 7th. at the Howard Johnsons
Motor Lodge in New Carrolton,
Maryland, outside of Washington,
DE. The event starts outa $17 per
person opening banquet on Friday

night. The entrance fee will be $5 for

a one day pass and $7 for both days
(Sat. & Sun.). Accomodations at the
Motor Lodge are priced at $62 /day.
The Eastern Seaboard and other
Eastern States is where Timex
introduced the little beast and spent
most of their promotion efforts,
Make early arrangments for this

ffair, as the event is expected to be

LARKEN ELECTRONICS
LAUNCHES oy eed

Larry Eenny

has just unleashed |. sme.
a new terminal /BBS program
for the Larken System. This prograrn
is now in its final testing stage and o
should be a great new addition to the
list of available telecommunications
software.

The PLOTTER N/L states that
according to Larry, this will opperate
as either a EBS or as a standard
terminal software. It eyen comes
with a “chat mode", and with just a
press of a key, you are in FULL term
mode, It will operate a both 300 and
1200 baud (with an RS242 and Hayes
Compatable modem). And will NOT
drop characters at 1200 baud. It will
also have “dump to disk” download.

This program will be available
form several sources, LAREEN, ED
GREY and RMG ENTERPRISES at a
price of only $25.00 + shipping.

CAMBRIDGE COMPUTER
EXTENDS SALES

Cambridge Computers have
extended their International sales
network by signing an exclusive
distribution agreement with Stengel

Computer Technik (SCT) in West
Germany. SCT has a network of more

Than 300 dealers in West Germany,
including West Berlin.

The 248 now has official
distribution in Italy, France,
Belgium, Switzerland, Austria,
Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland
and Turkey.

TID-BYTES
and NOT $50
NEW NEWS

Broke your computer? Why not
check out the repair service and
prices of:

PROMISED LAND ELECTRONICS
DAN ELLIOT

ROUTE 1, BOX 117

CABOOL, MO 65689

Dan assures everyone that the turn
around time is quite fast and cost is
minimal

We received a post card from Tom
Phillips in Jacksonville, Fla. listing
some items for sale. They are as
follows:

QL Printer- 3 ribbons, extra top
cover, manual, looks brand new. $125.
+ $5. shipping

2050 Modem W/ case, Docs, and
S/W $35. + 3 Shipping

MATHEVSON EEYBOARD I/F- 3
cable $35. + $3 shipping

66 Eey Eeytronics Keyboard-
wired for 2068, full size numeric key
pad $30 +3 shipping

2040 Printer- 21" cable, 2 rolls
paper, power supply $25.+ 3
shipping

These are only a few items that Tom
has for sale. Feel free to call him te
check availabilty. (904) 739-2580
after 6:00 pm E.ST.

ama Sierra Nevada Airways aude
GRAND CANYON
THE ULTIMATE TOUR EXPERIENCE
SAVE $PP), PER PERSON OFF OUR NORMAL PRICE

Tour includes pickup/dropoff at your hotel. Air tour of Grand Canyon aboard

our aircraft, land at the Grand Canyon Airport for a 3 1/2 hour land tour

along the South Rim of the Grand Canyon, including a stop at one of the

beautiful lodges for lunch. This 6 hour tour normally departs at 10:30 am

returning to Las Vegas at 4:30 pm. Call us anytime 24 hours per day to
arrange your

GRAND CANYON ULTIMATE EXPERIENCE

636-670)

|

Reg. Price $155.00 pp

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r4 "r

MasterCard

Mention the “HACEER™

a LAPTOPS ?

( (38

aU we) IT DEPENDS ON

eos THE SIZE OF
y(cy YOUR LAP

re AND THE DEPTH

OF YOUR

A POCKETS.
I

Ry Ao

Byee: Theresa Heisserman

Anyone who went to Comdex this
year had te be impressed with the
multitude of manufacturers sporting
“LAPTOP COMPUTERS,” and as a user
of the new “Lap” machines, I found
some humor in the quest for the
perfect “LAPTOP.”

For some unknown reason the
average Joe upon hearing about a
laptop computer might think this
new breed of machine is called such
because it fits on your lap. This also
conjures ideas of portability, and
golly jeepers maybe battery power!!!
He would be surprised to find that it
is all relative to the size of your lap
and the depth of your pockets.

Toshiba, that famous Japanese
manufacturer builds a “laptep” that
has no trouble fitting on the lap of
the average Green Bay Packer, whose
travelling companion is Mr. Wizard.
The T5100 will not only empty your
pockets, but requires good ole
electricity to operate on your lap.
This is one baby that will not operate
on your coast to coast flight, nor
while you sit under the lights at

9

Rigley Field.

Compaq has unleashed its first
“laptop” entry unte the world. The
SLT246, 14 pounds of pure power,
VGA backlit LCD screen, 20 or 40
meg drive, internal 2400 BPS
modem, expandable RAM to 3.6MB,
all this packaged to easily fit the lap
of the average American Executive
type. Of course let the company foot
the bill for this beauty at $5999, or
be sure itis insured in case you
accidently leave it in the bar after
Happy Hour. This beauty really
doesn't even need your lap, with its
Optional Desktop Expansion Base.

NEC unveiled two laptops, one for
either end of the spectrum. The
Prospeed 286 or 386 is all you ever
wanted in a desktop computer but
touted to be a “Laptop”, but don't
expect your secretary to lug this unit
around unless she is one of those
sumo Wrestlers in her spare time.
This laptop weighing in at a batten
weight of 18 pounds (excluding the
additional 3 pound battery) offers an
EGA backlit LCD screen, 1.44mb 3
172" drive, 2 MB RAM expandable to
10MB, and guess what else, a 100MB
internal Hard Drive, at only $7,500.
In case your secretary happens to
not have recently tried out for the
wrestling team, NEC offers the
Ultralite, a 4 1/2 pound cutie,
running at 9.5 MHZ, 640K RAM with
additional 1 MB dedicated RAM disk,
2400 BPS modem, LCD backlit CGA
supertwist display, 3 1/2" external
drive (the only way, aside from

laplink and the modem to get this
little darling to give up its data) all
this fora little less than $3,000.
she's a cutie, but she ain't cheap.

Sharp Electronics is a company not
to be passed over, they make
laptops for everyone, and when ne
one buys them, they just make more,
more bigger, more faster, more
expensive. Sharp introduced the
PC4502 laptop that easily fits on
anyones lap, it has a chargeable lead
battery, two 3 1/2" drives, runs
about &MHZ, 640K RAM, and a
beautiful backlit LCD supertwist
screen. This entry will just about go
anywere you want fo take itand at
less then $1100 you just may want to
take it everywhere you go. Beware
those hidden costs for this one, what
you saw is what you got, no serial
port (add $100), no color ‘mono
adapter (add $260), no modem (add
$400 for 1200B).. you can forget
using this one on business trips and
tampering with the hotel wiring
unless you plan on getting that
modem.

Now for a commentary from the
auther on the LAPTOP she knows and
lugs. The Amstrad PPC640, this long
lean little item is quite a laptop, with
its full size AT style keyboard (which
explains why its long instead of
deep), 640K RAM, 2 - 3 1/2" 720K
drives, CGA adapter, serial and
parallel ports, 2400 BPS modem, AC
power, Cig Lighter adapter, and
operates on 10 "C" cell batteries, LCD
supertwist screen (but not backlit a

6

big drawback, but now an available W
option for $335), and a carry case.
This entry weighs in atabout 15
pounds. My pockets, well lighter by
a little less than $1,000. This long
little jewel has travelled coast to
coast, through wind and rain, its
taken a licking and itis still ticking!
50 Mr. Joe, it depends on the size
of your lap, and the depth of your
pockets, but something is out there,
just for you tool!
Reprinted from the BYTES N/L
of the LAS VEGAS PC USERS
GROUP.

THAT |
AGAIN ll e

Last month, Chris Fenn’‘s article” |
The Cambridge Mystery
Machine" created its own mystery.
As the text flowed inte the program
that is used for this publication, it
mysteriously omitted an entire
sentence, therefor creating a whole
different meaning.
The story read about Dick
Pountain's article called "The
Intergration of a New Scale”. The
Anamartic project that was discussed
was a large disk of silicon that is
utilized into smaller chips. The story
should have read: was a disk of
silicon that is utilized whole
rather being split up into
smaller chips. Apologies to Chris
and its readers, if it caused any
confussion on the part of the reader. ©

Må CAMBRIDGE NEW
MM ENGLAND py

LAUNCHS SECOND jéj

WAVE ON VEGAS’ CES

Cambridge New England's
president, Mare Giguere and Nigle
Searle, Cambridge Directs
representative, invaded Las Vegas
with the 286 at the January Winter
showing of the Consumers
Electronics Show.

The 1989 CES hosted over 65,000
people with 1,472 exibits, in
776,000 square feet of floor space
spread out over four locations Mare
Giguere manned the Cambridge
exibit as potential buyers stopped to
view the capabilities of the newest of
“laptops”. The display consisted of a
continuous running video about the
288. As well as several hands on
models and displays of the complete
packages in an attache case showing
a complete portable system small
enough, yet still affordable.

As I stood by watching the
potential buyers get the feel of the
keys, and the compact-ness of the
machine, most were amazed at the
weight and the long lasting battery
life of the laptop. Also many
mentioned modem link -ups. And
when they were told of the link-up
capabilities to their other bigger
computers, the buyers were
impressed.

Marc also mentioned that the 268
packages now available are the:

PC Pack-------- @ $749.00

c

MacLite------------- $849.00
Portable Office------ $1369.00
(these are suggested retail prices)
The PC Pack and the MacLite
packages all come complete in its
own attache case with file transfer
programs and ready to use.

The Portable Office comes with a
Diconiz InkJet Printer using plain
paper, and file transfer programs
These three packages are ready to go
when you're ready.

Now that Cambridge has shown
the 28§ at both COMDEZ and CES, |
feel the word is out. And from what I
saw at both shows, the small “laptop”
will be a big hit among the users who
are on the move and need info
instantly.

MORE GOSSIP
FROM
AROUND

A Teliabiè source has reported that
a DOS is being developed for the 233.
No details as of this writing, are
available, but as more develops we
will keep you abreast of the outcome.

CHECK THIS OUT [Ww

Phil Wheeler has been busy these
days as a SYSOP for a new BBS
devoted to the 286. Phil now has an
X-Modem program that can be used
for the “laptop”. and is only $k. The
newest version (1.1) is a faster
program, allowing you to download

binary and also auto-dial to a Hayes
compatable modem. This program is
titled 288 TRM_BAS and is being
updated all the time. Another
program of interest is a 288
dissasembler by Phil.

Also on the board is a PATCH
program. Actually there are two
programs PATCH and PATCH 2.

PATCH 2 does however have an
added feature. The second program
is a screen dump, so you can send
graphics to your printer and it alse
has a line editor as well.

Both the PATCH and the 268
TRM_BAS are from the UE. So as
you can see, Phil is working hard at
his own board providing the 288
users with programs just like the big
boys. So in case you haven't
contacted the newest BBS around and
you forget the phone number it’s:
TORRANCE LAPTOP SUPPORT GP.
1-213-370-2754 8/1/N

CAMBRIDGE
LAUNCHES (ge
NEW PRODUCT

In case you havent subscribed to
the 288. EPROM newsletter, here isa
item of interest. According to the —
N/L, around the end of Oct-88,
Cambridge Computers launched a
new product-not actually a computer
product, but a satellite receiver ata
price which should prove difficult to
match. Cambridge's entry inte this
new market puts them in direct
competition with Sir Clives old

8

pd

parring partner Amstrad, whe are,
alsa producing a receiver system.
Cambridge's “dish” is in fact a flat
square aerial (or squarial) just under
two feet in diameter. It will be
supplied with a tunning unit which
will sit right next to the TY.

The outer case of the Cambr idge
squarial is made of plastic, and a
patented technological breakthrough
has enabled them to design a
receiver without a feedhorn which is
found sticking out of the center of
other dish receivers.

square receivers have the added
advantage that they are not.
directional as dish type receivers and
thus easier to install and set-up.
The basic package of the squarial and
tuner will cost around $274 (U.S)
this compares to Amstrads projected
price of $370. (U.S)

Options include a $335 package
that includes a infra-red remote
control for channel changing, and a
top-of-the-line model at $425 for
stereo receiption, graphic equalizer
and remote control. All versions of
the receiver system are entirely of
British design and although details of
manufacturing had not been finalized
at the time the 288 EPROM N/L was
written (Nov-Dec '88) SCI, who
makes the 788, would seem to be the
favorite.

THIS SPACE AVAILABLE
FOR YOUR COMMENTS:
AND IDEAS...

eae We are
eheow-up of members ‘atthe e
theet, so if you don't have anything
Gin evsta aie aa eaters te de on the 1th. of Feb., do show
showing up-all four of us. While ~-.....¢...poursuppertahd show up.

Ralph Hammer wa s oa SD 155101 a ee ee
disk-drive system, the gp

ERI PLE
uF

the last ge L After 30 es nani
minutes of disi cussing A rhat other x a > of z 1, A E À SOFTWA R E
FFI NEEDS YOUR

User Groups were doing, we were

then summoned to two large platters H ELP
of freshly baked las agna, fookedup | -BilPFerrebee reports in the
bey pone other than Dawn, our l w : i afst issue of E. A ei =. newsletter

faithful co-editor and me ailing
director, among other thii Sa

After the lunch, we ther!
proceeded back into the com payee
room to get back to the business at
“a We then viewed gome

on
Se ane on elPRalp Fa x

to study up on the Spectrum 646
program and hopes te es aw the

group its fuwe@biog:
meeting onFeb” Alp
brought a letter from Bill’ :
Heberlein, the winner of the Hacker
contest, and a print-out of the
program. Bill listed the possitgk

g that he needs your help in getting a
Too @@petition togèther, signed by all the
r nbers of your users group, that

you are in full support of your
T5 and want pat UE. to share their

cts with fhe WS. Writ} à letter
Self or asa rd |

software companie hin the 0
open the doors to their produc ts. Tel
them how you f eel.

i. Tou cange
ters to: ©" ~
Bill Ferrebee
Mountaineers Software

a

correspondence tf the correct people
hie ree support Bill in his
aye Mrnaterial
dinis cy agut@eems that
nage isowo id. So do
write as 4 user or as a group.

9

problems and the correction!
the next issue for all to see.
The meeting then concluded
and John Sumpolic : POS
left-overs home to enjoy at a later .

made. We will list the corrections in
around 4:00 pm. with Sa ris,

ng th
time. Allin all the meeting was very